Rack for holding automobile body parts



Aug. 27, 1957 G. J. MAssA 2,803,872

RACK FOR HOLDING AUTOMOBILE BODY PARTS Filed Jan. 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet l i? l I i? I 3 f2 INVENTOR. M: 5; 650965 J MASSA, I I v /4 BY 6 7%5771W 5 W v 4 TTOQA/EYS.

Aug. 27, 1957 ca. J. MAssA 2,303,872?

RACK FOR HOLDING AUTOMOBILE BODY PARTS Filed Jan. 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I INVENTOR. GEOEGE (1 4414534,

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United States Patent 2,803,872 Patented Aug. 27, 1957 dice RACK FOR HOLDING AUTDMOBILE BODY PARTS George J. Massa, Edwardsville, Ill.

Application January 14, 1955, Serial No. 481,763

2 Claims. (Cl. 29-288) This invention, summarized briefly, comprises a stand on which is hinged, to swing about a horizontal axis, a work holding device mounted on the stand for vertical adjustment to selected elevations. The hinged device includes a plurality of radially projecting, longitudinally extensible arms, disposed in a common plane locatable at any angle between the horizontal and vertical due to the hinging of the device upon a horizontal axis. The arms are independently extensible sothat one arm can be extended without regard to the extensible adjustment of the remaining arms, thus to accommodate the device for holding parts of different sizes and configurations. The extensible parts at the outer ends of the arms have crossheads, rotatable bodily about and disposed perpendicularly to the axes of the radial arms, and shittable longitudinally of and within the crossheads are clamp support bars. The bars are adjustable within their associated crossheads independently of one another, again to accommodate the device for holding work of difierent sizes and shapes. Each of the bars has pivotally connected to one end thereof a clamp support sleeve, extending parallel to the bar, and rotatable within said sleeve is a C clamp adapted to grip the work.

The invention has one main object, which is to provide a generally improved rack Characterized by its facility of operation, its compactness, its adaptability to securely grip work pieces of different sizes and shapes, its disposition of the work in any selected plane and at any desired elevation found most convenient for the workman, its adaptability for holding more than one piece of work at the same time, as for example, when two pieces are to be welded to one another, and its ability to support the work while covering the surface being worked on to a minimum extent.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appendedthereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure l is a rear perspective view of the rack in which a supported automobile door is shown in dotted outline;

Figure .2 is a perspective view of the rack from one side;

Figure 3. s an enlarged vertical sectional 'view on line 3--3 of Figure l;

. Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view on line 4-4 of Figure 2; and

Figure Sis a fragmentary side elevational view showing a modified construction of one of the work securing arms.

The rack constituting the present invention includes a heavy, cast base which if desired can be bolted securely to the floor. Thebase 10 has a centrally disposed, upwardly facing socket in which is fixedly mounted a vertically, upwardly extending sleeve 12 open at its upper end to telescopically receive a tubular post 14. The post 14 is vertically extensible and retractable relative to the sleeve, to selected positions. In each position to which the post is so adjusted, a lock screw 16, threaded into a boss formed upon the upper end portion of the sleeve, and hav- 2 ing a sliding, transversely disposed handle, can be turned home against the post to preserve the adjustment. The post is formed, for a substantial part of its length, With diametrically opposed rows of transversely aligned apertures 18, and any pair of the transversely aligned apertures is adapted to receive a drop pin 20, to hold the post at selected elevations relative to the sleeve when the lock screw 16 is released. By reason of this arrangement, the lock screw can be backed cit, and with the drop pin in place, the post 14 can be rotated about the axis of the sleeve. 1

Welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the upper end of the post is a base plate 22 lying in a horizontal plane and having a rectangular outer configuration. Hinged at 24 to one end of the base plate is a vertically swingable turntable support plate 26, which swings upwardly and downwardly about the axis of the hinge 24, in each position to which the base plate and post 14 are vertically adjusted and rotated relative to the stationary parts of the stand.

A locking bar 28 is hinged at 30 to that end of the plate 26 remote from hinge connection 24. Bar 28 has longitudinally spaced apertures 32. A lever handle 34 is fulcrumed at 36 upon a guide plate 37 having a hinge connection to the base plate 22. The lower end of the bar 28 slides in the guide plate 37, and formed in the guide 37 is an opening registrable with any of the openings 32. The lever is biased at one end in the direction of the guide and the bar, by springs 38 connected between the lever and the guide plate 37. At said end, the lever handles has a finger or detent 40 extendable through the registering openings of the guide plate and bar. In this way, when the support plate 26 is swung upwardly to a selected position of inclination, the adjustment is preserved by locking of the bar 28 to the guide plate 37 through the medium of the lever handle 34.

Supported upon the upper surface of the plate 26 is a turntable including a turntable bottom plate 42 having a center opening through which is extended a bolt 44. A nut 46 is welded to the underside of the plate 26, and threadedly engages the bolt 44. The turntable bottom plate 42 is freely rotatable upon the bolt 44, when the bolt is backed otr. At its outer end the bolt has a sliding handle 48 to facilitate the rotation thereof.

In a plane parallel to the turntable bottom plate 42 is a turntable top or cover plate 50 also having a center opening in which is rotatable the bolt 44.

Radially spaced from the center openings of the turntable plate are bolts 52 extending through and between said plates, the bolts passing through registering openings formed in the inner end portions of tubular arms 54 extending radially outwardly from the plates, and confined between the turntable top and bottom plates. The arms 54, thus, are independently pivotable about the axes of their associated bolts 52, and in addition, the turntable including the arms is bodily rotatable about the axis of the bolt 44.

At their outer ends, the arms 54 are formed open, and rotatably engaged in said outer ends are extension arms 56. Lock screws 58 are threaded through the arms 54 into engagement with the extension arms 56 to hold the extension arms in selected positions to which they are slidably and/ or rotatably adjusted relative to the arms 54.

Fixedly secured to the outer ends of the extension arms 56 are tubular crossheads 60 formed open at their opposite ends, said crossheads having clamp support bars 62 slidably and rotatably engaged therein. The bars 62, thus, may be bodily adjusted in the direction of their lengths within the crossheads, along lines perpendicular to the longitudinal center lines of the arms 54 and extension arms 56.

In selected positions to which they are slidably and/or 3 rotatably adjusted within the crossheads 60, the bars 62 are fixedly retained by means of clamping or locking screws 64 threaded into the crossheads against the bars 62.

Further, the bars 62 extend through set collars 66 which are secured to the bars 62 in selected positions along the lengths of the bars 62. Due to this arrangement, each bar can be adjusted in the direction of its length within its associated crosshead to a selected extent, according to the thickness of the particular piece of work which it is to engage. Thereafter, the set collars 66 are shifted into engagement with the adjacent end of the crosshead, and are secured to the bars 62.. Subsequently, should it be necessary to remove the piece of Work for some reason, after which the Work is to be returned into its previous position upon the rack, the adjustment of the bars 62, so far as their lengthwise adjustment is concerned, will not be lost. In other words, one need not use the lock screws 64 in every instance, since in some instances, it may be desired to continue to permit free rotation of the bars 62 Within their associated crossheads, while still preserving the longitudinal adjustment of the bars 62.

In one end of the bars 62 there are formed diametrically extending slots 68 opening upon said one end of the bar. Pivotally engaged in said slots, to swing about axes disposed transversely of the bars, are ears 70 rigid with sleeves 72 in which are rotatable the bight portions of C-clamps 74 adapted to grip the work. The turntable arms, extensions, crossheads, bars, and clamps form a spider assembly for gripping the work.

By reason of the construction illustrated and described, it will be seen that the piece of Work can be positioned at any desired inclination from the vertical to the horizontal. Further, in each position to which the work is so adjusted, it can be bodily adjusted in a vertical direction. Still further, the'radially projecting arms 54, being independently swingable about axes parallel to the axis of rotation of the turntable on which they are mounted, can be adjusted to selected positions about the periphery of the work. The arms, being independently extensible, will of course accommodate work of different sizes and shapes, and at the outer ends of the arms there are provided rotatable clamp support means which are independently adjustable along lines normal to the common plane of the several arms.

Due to the construction shown, the rack is adapted to support any type of automobile part, in any selected position, and, further, achieves this desirable result without sacrificing compactness in the size of the rack itself. When the rack is not in use, it takes up a minimum of space, the space occupied being no greater than the floor area covered by the base 10.

In order to adapt the rack to hold small work pieces, an extension arm 8%), similar to the extension arms 56, is received in the tubular crosshead 60 of each of the extension arms 56 for movement longitudinally therethrough to a desired adjusted position and maintained at the selected position by the locking screw 64. The extension arms 80 are each provided at one end with a sleeve 82 having a central bore longitudinally therethrough normal to the axis of the associated extension arm 89.

An extension bar 84 is slidably received in the bore of the sleeve 82, defining a crosshead similar to the crossheads 64 for movement in a rectilinear path therethrough in spaced parallel relation to the adjacent arm 54 in a direction toward the turntable, and can be secured in a selected position in its rectilinear path by a locking screw 86 carried by the sleeve 82 which is operable in the same manner as the locking screws 64.

At their ends directed toward the turntable from which the arms 56 radially extend, each of the extension bars '84 is provided with work engaging means, generally indicated at 88, identical with the work engaging means 70, 72, 74, mounted for movement in an arcuate path about an axis, defined by the pivot pin 90, disposed perpendicularly to the axis of the bar 84.

Thus, the extension bars 84 will be movable to selected adjusted positions toward the turntable with the work engaging means 88 thereon disposed at a location spaced inwardly, that is, toward the turntable, of the open end of the arms 54 in which the extension arms 56 are telescopically received. Hence, a work piece of a size smaller than that which could be accommodated by the arm structure of the form of Figures 2 to 4 will be available to the operator.

Also, the extension bars 84 can be rotated about their longitudinal axis in their associated sleeves 82 to have the work securing and clamping means assume any desired angular position to most conveniently grip the work piece and be secured in the selected position of'rotation.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A rack for holding automobile body parts comprising a vertical post; a flat base plate lying in a horizontal plane and secured to the post at the center of the base plate; a fiat turntable support plate hinged along one edge to one edge of the base plate to swing about a horizontal axis; a locking bar hingedly connected at one end to the opposite edge of the support plate to swing on the support plate about a horizontal axis; a guide plate slidably receiving the other end of the lock bar and hinged to the opposite edge of the base plate; means carried by the guide plate lockably engaging the lock bar with the guide plate in selected positions to which the lock bar is slidablyadjusted within the guide plate; a turntable carried by the support plate and rotating thereon about an axis normal to and passing through the center of the support plate; a plurality of arms radiating from the turntable and lying in a plane normal to said axis of the turntable;

and clamps means on the outer ends of the arms for gripping an article supported thereby.

2. A rack for holding automobile body parts comprising a vertical post; a flat base plate lying in a horizontal plane and secured to the post at the center of the base plate; a flat turntable support plate hinged along one edge to edge of the base plate to swing about a horizontal axis; a locking bar hingedly connected at one end to the opposite edge of the support plate to swing on the support plate about a horizontal axis; a guide plate slidably receiving the other end of the lock bar and hinged to the opposite edge of the base plate; means carried by the guide plate lockably engaging the lock bar with the guide plate in selected positions to which the lock bar is slidably adjusted Within the guide plate; a turntable carried by the support plate and rotating thereon about an axis normal to and passing through the center of the support plate; a plurality of arms radiating from the turntable and lying in a plane normal to said axis of the turntable; and clamp means on the outer ends of the arms for gripping an article supported thereby, said turntable comprising a bottom plate in face-to-face contact with the turntable support plate, a top plate overlying the bottom plate, said arms having inner end portions extending between said top and bottom plates, and a clamp bolt extending through the top and bottom plates and having a threaded connection to said turntable support plate, said arms being pivotally connected to the top and bottom plates and the clamp bolt being adapted to free the turntable for rotation about its axis.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,127,708 Wilber Feb. 9, 1915 6 Statham Nov. 13, 1923 Cole Mar. 11, 1924 Ferguson Mar. 10, 1942 Koszeghy Mar. 2, 1943 Killius Jan. 11, 1949 Montague Sept. 18, 1951 

